Part 2 (May 2024) · #1 of 13 in that tierWatch the moment (1:55:37)
Risk of Rain Returns
- Developed by
- Hopoo Games
- Published by
- Gearbox Publishing, 2K
$14.99
Carefully designed, beautifully remastered, and loaded with new ways to play—Risk of Rain is back and better than ever! Dive into the iconic roguelike full of unique loot combinations, enhanced with new Survivors, overhauled multiplayer, fan favorite content from Risk of Rain 2, and more!
Consensus
B73.9/100
Steam players90% positiveVery Positive28,738 reviews
Metacritic ↗84/100Users: 7.9/10
VG Insights estimate ↗≈862K copies · ≈$9.3M gross
What creators say
Ranked May 2026 · #1 of 7 in that tierWatch the moment (0:13:45)
Ranked Oct 2025 · #5 of 11 in that tierListen to the episode
Ranked Apr 2025 · #3 of 4 in that tierWatch the moment (1:12:09)
What players say
A ground-up 2D remake of the 2013 co-op action roguelike Risk of Rain: pick a survivor, loot stacking items across timed stages while difficulty climbs with the clock, and fight your way to the final boss, rebuilt with new survivors, items, artifacts, and overhauled multiplayer.
Critics and players largely see it as a model remake: Metacritic sits at 84 from 13 critics and Steam at about 90% positive across roughly 28.7k reviews (Very Positive). Reviewers highlight the extra survivors and items, polished pixel art, music, and much better multiplayer, while noting it stays conservative and still feels dated next to modern roguelites and to Risk of Rain 2. It is not early access and is a finished game with no DLC beyond the soundtrack. Steam reviewers wish for more post-launch updates, and a vocal minority find the core loop, hit feedback and Providence Trial unlock gating frustrating.
Players love
- Faithful but much more polished remake: sharper pixel art that keeps the original's look, plus quality-of-life options that can mostly be toggled individually.
- Soundtrack and atmosphere repeatedly called out by critics and Metacritic users as a highlight.
- Large new content layer: new survivors (for example the Drifter, a scrap-gathering brawler), extra items and Risk of Rain 2 fan-favorite content alongside the classic roster (about 15 survivors on the store page).
- Item-stacking power fantasy: players like growing from weak to screen-clearing god and learning which items and survivors combine best.
- Overhauled multiplayer with up to four players online and local split-screen, which critics (GameSkinny, for one) single out as the best way to play.
- Short-ish, replayable runs and no-DLC completeness, which Steam reviewers appreciate compared with the sequel.
- Accessible to some newcomers and a clear upgrade for returning fans: several reviewers call it the right way to do a remake, while others say the original felt too hard or dated to them.
- Feels distinct from RoR2 in a positive way: a 2D, more arcade-like cousin that some players prefer for its aesthetics and pacing.
- Co-op is the emotional hook in the most-upvoted reviews: couples and parents play it with partners and kids, and the chaotic item-grabbing and frequent deaths are treated as part of the fun.
Common complaints
- Combat readability: late-game hordes overlap, enemy attacks have little telegraphing, and players say it is hard to tell when they have been hit.
- Flying enemies and magma worms are widely described as oppressive, since 2D aiming and movement limit how you answer them.
- Core loop feels repetitive to some: walk away from the crowd and spam skills, little positioning depth or macro play compared with RoR2.
- Providence Trials are required for some unlocks, and reviewers call the challenge design punishing rather than teaching.
- Technical rough edges in reviews: crashes, freezes when the screen fills up, sticky controller input, and controller deadzone or menu issues.
- Multiplayer connection problems reported (disconnected from host errors) and local co-op camera or scale issues on TVs.
- No mid-run save, which The Games Machine flagged, and some players lose a run after force closing.
Can feel tedious
- Very short, sparse item availability per map makes scavenging feel slow while enemies outscale you, per a critical review.
- Randomness of drops (especially the active item) means many runs feel alike to some players, and progression for new survivors can feel slow.
- Providence Trial unlocks and some achievement hunts are described as gatekeeping and sadistic.
- Runs can drag at around an hour, and long late-game hordes get repetitive for some.
- Heavy difficulty for newcomers: several reviewers bounced off even after hours.
What's unique
- Difficulty scales with elapsed time rather than stage count, forcing a tradeoff between looting thoroughly and moving on.
- Huge roster of stackable items whose interactions are unpredictable, producing build variety that players call esoteric and satisfying.
- Survivors with very distinct kits plus alternate skill unlocks, and Artifacts that mutate a run.
- Providence Trials, a set of skill challenges that double as unlock content.
- A 2D side-scrolling co-op format with online and local play, unusual next to the 3D Risk of Rain 2.
- Reviewers frame it as remake-plus-superset: it keeps the original's feel while folding in RoR2 content.
Players want
- More post-launch updates and content; 'lack of updates' is a repeated complaint even among positive reviews.
- Better feedback and telegraphing of enemy attacks and hits, and clearer screen readability in late-game chaos.
- Mid-run saving and more robust stability and performance when many objects are on screen.
- Fix multiplayer connection reliability and improve split-screen camera behavior for local co-op.
- Rework unlock gating so that Providence Trials are not needed for core item and ability unlocks, and improve controller handling and remapping.
Summarised from Steam reviews and community discussion.
Steam tags
Action RoguelikeOnline Co-OpMultiplayer2DPvELocal Co-OpLooter ShooterSci-fiActionController
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Tier list Part 2 (2024)
Risk of Rain Returns is the 2023 remake of the original 2D action roguelike Risk of Rain. PepperHead played 80+ hours of the original and sees this as simply the better version: same core game and art style, cleaner, with more content, characters and items. He places it in a very high A tier, saying it is only below S because he personally prefers two other games, and that it could be an easy S for many people.
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